Battle, along with the mayors of Birmingham and Tuscaloosa, spoke at the final session of the three-day legislative orientation conference at the University of Alabama.

"One thing I want to impress upon you is to make sure that whatever budget you put through is a budget that is achievable," he said. "Proration rolls downhill."

Battle said it's essential for the leaders of school systems to know up front rather than during the school year or near the end whether they will need to make cuts or find new revenue.

On another topic, he said the extraordinary growth of Huntsville and Madison County, fueled by BRAC, dictates that roads would continue to be the most pressing issue for the area.

Battle noted it was the top issue when he entered city government in 1984 and would likely be the same in 2012 if he seeks re-election.

"We've been very, very fortunate and very, very blessed, but we have to work hard on the transportation system," he said. "We have 35,000 people working at Redstone Arsenal producing $80,000 each in income. That, in turn, is a $56 million a year impact on the state of Alabama in state income tax, and that doesn't count the sales tax. That's the kind of impact that's going back into your treasury."

Battle said while Huntsville and Madison County, and other North Alabama counties, are striving to cope with the first base realignment that sent thousands of new high-paying jobs to the area, the counties and cities are preparing for a second BRAC.

With a shrinking federal budget, he said if there isn't another BRAC the size of the first, there will likely be another smaller round of base consolidations. "We have to make sure this one (current BRAC) works well."

Meanwhile Battle said in an interview he isn't worried about the loss of 100 years of experience in the Legislature that Republicans won from Democrats in North Alabama in the Nov. 2 Republicans sweep.

Battle called it a "great opportunity to make new friends."

"We all recognize it's a new day in Alabama politics," he said. "We're going to have to double up our work and make sure we do this education facet we need to do. I do think there will be a learning curve for all of them in this process."

Battle said it was essential for the new delegation to continue to work closely with the Alabama Department of Transportation and the Alabama Development Office.

Rep. Mac McCutcheon, R-Capshaw, said he expects to see more North Alabama lawmakers in leadership roles after the Jan. 11 organizational session.

For example, Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, who represents part of Madison County, is expected to land the chairship of the Senate Finance and Taxation General Fund Committee.

Veteran Rep. Howard Sanderford, R-Huntsville, said he expects Madison County to benefit now that six of its seven-member delegation are Republicans.

"I'm more excited than I've been in quite a while because when I first went down, I was Republican number 17 and now we've got 66," said Sanderford, who was first elected in 1989.